Ranabaali: Vijay Deverakonda thanks the media, Rahul Sankrityan defends the runtime

Ranabaali, the pan-India film pairing Vijay Deverakonda with Rashmika Mandanna, opened in theatres on October 16. Its lead actor and its director have both spoken up about how the film is landing.

Vijay met the media in Hyderabad after the release. He said journalists had called the team after seeing the film and sent messages, and that this was why the team set up the meeting. He thanked them for backing the film and said he was confident it would be a big success, adding that he knows how far it can go.

Viewers who have seen the teaser and trailer will still find many more layers in the full film, Vijay said. He credited director Rahul Sankrityan with building it as a complete package and said several episodes in it are already drawing praise.

The actor said the team made the film to tell a story they felt mattered to Telugu audiences, who were their primary target. He plans to travel to several cities to celebrate with fans, and the team will also take the film to Hindi and Tamil audiences.

Length has been a talking point since the release. At the film's success meet, Rahul addressed it head on. He said world-building needed time, that the team took a risk on the runtime, and that the choice turned into an advantage for the film.